February 2014 marks 4 years I’ve been blogging. Thinking back 4 years vitalization was really starting to ramp up and the IT landscape was changing for us all. I was leading the Phoenix VMUG at that time and we were seeing tremendous growth in attendance.

Flash forward to 2014 and once again our industry is changing for the better. We are going from manual delayed processes to fully automated self-services. Companies who used to be fixed into single offerings are expanding daily, seriously look at Netflix they are now producing their own series for their customers. We have seen the fall and/or decline of many Brick and Motor companies in the retail, entertainment, computer, electronics, and book stores, etc. The ones who could keep their doors open are innovating to stay competitive. One area I find interesting are the local mom-n-pop stores around Video and Books, they seem are making a comeback as the retail giants in their areas close their doors. Yes these places still exist and they have a loyal customer base, but for how long that seems to be the question for them.

Personally, I enjoy change and what it brings. I think change is the zest of life. I enjoy working for a company that embraces change and is the market leader in many of these areas. These buzz words you hear in our industry – Public-Hybrid-Private Cloud, End User Computing, Bring your own devices, XAAS (Anything As a service) etc. these are the conduits for IT change as the company’s we work for continue to innovate. This type of innovation will provide services that we and the customers we serve want, need, and deserve. Keep in mind as some point XAAS will be on your doorstep. Yes I’m talking to you Mr. /Mrs. IT Admin working in SMB market. It’s coming your way too so be ready. Start thinking of Enterprise Technologies and strategies no matter how big or small you are. As these strategies will expand your personal knowledge BUT keep your company competitive.

One last topic INSPIRE. Over the next year I plan to work with a few of my old VMUG leaders to form a group to inspire youth around technologies and engineering. We are working out the details but our beliefs are simple – Help youth in our local community to embrace the technology at a deeper level. We feel this will help them stay on track in school and hopefully choose a career in Technology and engineering. I can still remember the day when I made my choice. It was 1982 and I was playing my good old Atari 2600. I just had to know how it worked and this desire to know naturally led me to my career today.

Next 4 years, yep, I’m looking forward to them and I’m moving forward with Embrace and Inspire as my guides!